![]() 03/27/2019 at 15:54 • Filed to: OT | ![]() | ![]() |
Gorgeous sunset from a couple of months back. Also, those gas prices were rather nice, too.
It’s been a while, hasn’t it? What’s shakin’? It’s been almost a year since I’ve dropped by to say hello thanks to a job that pretty much consumed my life.
Soooooooo... I ditched the job and am getting ready to start a new one next week! Better pay, better benefits, hopefully a lot less work and stress. Best part? I’ll be working with several former (now current again) colleagues whom I got to catch up with earlier this week. After working solo in an under-supported, under-resourced position for so long, I had forgotten how nice it is to be appreciated and part of a positive, collaborative team. To put things in perspective, my (now former) boss is replacing me with FIVE people! That’s how much ish I had on my shoulders.
In car news: I paid off my car! Woot! I drive Jelly Bean a LOT, though, and am on track to hit 100,000 miles before the end of the year. That timeline might be moved up a bit considering I’ll be driving a fair bit more for the new gig.
So, that’s what’s going on in my world. What’s going on in yours? I’d love to hear it and catch up with everyone. Feel free to post vintage Mustangs or pictures of your furbabies.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 01:46 |
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I got a fiero project car recently. It is neither a mustang nor a fur baby, but it is pretty unique. Does that count?
![]() 03/27/2019 at 01:54 |
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Welcome back!
![]() 03/27/2019 at 01:59 |
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Well hello stranger! Glad you’re well.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 02:10 |
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Welcome back! Congrats on the new job, sounds way better than the old one.
My world has changed a lot lately: I graduated from university, got a job on the other side of the country (not that that’s far in the Netherlands, and moved to a new city, and moved into my first appartment alone. I must say that it took a while to get used to all these changes, but I’m finally getting there.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 02:20 |
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Hi there! Thanks for that sunset pic. It’s gorgeous. It must have looked amazing in real life.
You probably won’t recognize me; I started posting here after you stopped. Pl eased to meet you!
I am most unfortunately currently furbabyless. I’ve been looking for a new doggo for nearly a month now, but every time I start the process somewhere they tell me that dog has already been adopted, or I need to have other dogs, or they just never respond at all
![]() 03/27/2019 at 02:23 |
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Thanks, Brian! How are you? Are you enjoying the California poppy bloom this year? I’ve seen photos and they look incredible!
![]() 03/27/2019 at 02:23 |
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Thanks! How goes it?
![]() 03/27/2019 at 02:24 |
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Congrats on graduating and the new job and all the adulting! What does The Netherlands look like in the spring? Anything in particular you love about this season in your country?
![]() 03/27/2019 at 02:25 |
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Change jobs maybe so you can have a life perhaps?
![]() 03/27/2019 at 02:26 |
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Man, come to Texas! Lax spay/neuter laws in lots of places here mean we have an over abundance of doggos needing furever homes. I know of one shelter alone that euthanizes around 30,000 animals a year. (At least as of a few years ago. Hopefully things have gotten better, but I can’t tell because they stopped publicizing their euthanasia rates). Seriously, if Texas is anywhere near you, it might be worth a trip. Hope you find a doggo.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 02:27 |
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It definitely counts! Please tell me you’re going to turn it into a Fiero trike! Hehehe.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 02:33 |
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I had no idea you’d moved as well. So... n ew apartment.... House warming party???
![]() 03/27/2019 at 02:40 |
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I’m in Portland, so it’s not really driveable, but I’m actually trying to adopt a doggo via the West Houston Animal Rescue (whom they would fly up here). I’ve sent them a message three different ways (two different email addresses and then a Petfinder message), and tried calling a few times, and gotten no response. I started last Friday, so it hasn’t been that long, but I’m getting antsy. If I don’t hear anything back by the end of day tomorrow, I’ll probably start looking for new candidates.
One of my coworkers in Texas has a friend who’s taken in 6 dogs and 9 cats, and hasn’t been able to find anyone to adopt or even foster them. She might be driving them up here to turn them over to some of our shelters. The Portland area is a huge importer of dogs; my last dog was bussed up from central California.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 03:25 |
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Complicated. :) But therapy is helping, I hope.
Got any articles planned for Oppo? What are you driving these days?
![]() 03/27/2019 at 03:32 |
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We in Washington state get most of our adoption dogs from Texas because of that very thing. In fact, my two pups come from Texas as we wanted a Carolina dog again, but found two after my last one of 16 years was put down.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 04:10 |
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Almost a year? Yikes! Nice sunset pic.
Me? Battling colon cancer, that’s probably the biggest change . They caught it in time and it didn’t spread. Surgery was successful and I was out of hospital in two days, followed by a month off. Now I’m going through the fun that is chemotherapy. I’ve gone back to work, but I can’t remember the last time I’ve worked a full five days in a row. Spending nights on the bathroom floor is not conducive to productivity the next day. And I just learned that a good friend of mine was diagnosed with cancer, but in her case it’s probably too late. Getting old s ucks sometimes.
I’ve been trying my hand at a little furniture restoration, but it’s not quite going as planned. I’ve done some steps in the wrong order leading to further complications later. Some of my clamps have broken, flying off and breaking things; note to self - stay away from plastic clamps in high-stress locations. And I thought that the glue I chose would be sufficient based on what I read online in multiple places, but that’s turning out not to be the case based on parts that have snapped off, leading to a re-evaluation on that front. But I’ll keep at it, once I regain a little strength. The fact that I’m writing this after 3am is not good in that regard, considering that my alarm is going to go off on less than two hours. Here’s hoping for a later shift next quarter...
![]() 03/27/2019 at 05:01 |
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Most of the Netherlands still looks the same as the rest of the year..
However, I moved to the area where they grow most tulips, and those fields look amazing when in bloom . In a few weeks time they will be a multitude of stunning colours!
![]() 03/27/2019 at 05:05 |
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Yeah, I moved shortly after getting this job, because a 120km one way commute was a bit much to do each day (and spending 5 hours in a train each day got old very quickly too )
If any of you had been passing Leiden on the way to the meet we could have had a house warming party before we go to France :p
![]() 03/27/2019 at 05:35 |
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Welcome back. Congrats on the new job, and doubly congrats on getting out of what sounds like an abusive relationship with the old one.
Our fur babies’ game du jour at the moment is combat washing, a sport in which you attempt to get your brother in a headlock position from which you can wash his face while he c an’ t wash yours. I have no idea why they suddenly think this is more fun than their normal game of just killing each other and trashing the furniture , but they do.
Also, we just discovered our house has a secret attic which is accessed by swinging out a bookshelf, which is kinda fun. We’re thinking we may need to put a shortwave radio and a code book in there.
On the cars front, I dodged a bullet by pulling out of the Toyobaru valve spring recall at the last minute, and haven’t yet gotten round to fitting the camber bolts which have been sitting on my bench for about two months. But Casey moved under his own steam last weekend for the first time since he threw a track, which is a baby milestone.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 06:08 |
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Welcome back! I’ve been commuting weekly to Houston for work. Being away from family sucks, but I’ve used the extra time to work on my pilot’s certificate. If the weather holds, I should be flying on my own in a couple of months!
![]() 03/27/2019 at 07:54 |
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Having worked a job where I was replaced by three people (one of whoom quit because of overwork) i know the feeling. May your sanity and oppo time both improve ;) in the mean time we havr 73 lambs. Six of them are bottle lambs, which means we have to feed the little buggers every six hours. I’m really getting sick of midnight feedings. At least they’re cute.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 08:11 |
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Hey, good to see you! How’s Enzo?
![]() 03/27/2019 at 09:03 |
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Xyl0! We’ve missed you over at Fur Face Friday. I hope you and Enzo are doing well.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 09:18 |
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Sup dude.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 09:32 |
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Naaaahhh. Gonna keep it as an iron Duke powered little runabout.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 10:43 |
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Yes they are amazing this year! I’m doing well. My son graduated college last year and two of the three triplets are graduating this year s
o finances are looking up. If fact, I celebrated a bit and treated myself to this little tomato:
![]() 03/27/2019 at 15:59 |
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Picking her up friday!
![]() 03/27/2019 at 15:59 |
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I am slowly improvinating my Galaxie, and making slightly more money so I can afford to do that. Need to borrow my aunt’s sewing machine before the seats finish falling apart, though. Heve en Moesteng:
![]() 03/27/2019 at 16:00 |
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Welcome back!!! Congrats on so much good news!
I...uh... started collecting motorcycles. I’m basically David Tracy nowadays but with a lot less rust. Personally, 2018 was the best year of my life and I’m trying to make 2019 even better. Thus far I am off to a bloody good start.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 16:09 |
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Congrats on the new gig!
So, you’re on track to hit 100k, but how much cooler would it be to hit 100k... on track? =)
![]() 03/27/2019 at 16:21 |
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havent seen or heard from you in a while. glad to hear all is okay.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 16:25 |
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Several of my b uildings under construction, AutoX, RallyX, motorcycling. Loving weather that isn’t actively trying to keep me from going outside after work.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 16:31 |
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Gosh they are cute.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 16:32 |
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Congratulations on paying off the car and your new job.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 16:33 |
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My parents adopted Buster. He attacks
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:29 |
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Oh my goodness! Buster looks so soft! Please rub those floppy velvety ears for me and give him a treat and tell him he’s a very good boi.
How’s stuff going otherwise? Whatcha been doing since school? Things are well, I hope?
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:32 |
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I just saw two videos about the Netherlands today on Facebook. Guess Big Brother was paying attention to these comments, lol. The first one was about the tulips. It looked like some sort of open air market square and there were tons of tulips set out all over the ground (in boxes, of course) free for people to take. It looked fantastic! The second one was about people ice skating on channels that had frozen over. Everyone looks so fit in the Netherlands. The US looks very different in that regard.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:33 |
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Visiting my parents this weekend, dad discovered a stray kitten maybe only 8 weeks old. It was too late to call animal control for her, so I tried to do my best. Gave her a saucer of milk and dipped her in flea bath. She was absolutely covered in pests. :(
My own chonk of a cat is a shelter rescue and I love him to bits. He’s my bestie.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:34 |
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I know of some shelters that have agreements in Colorado, too. They transport dogs up there every 2-ish weeks. It really is insane how bad our pet population problem is here. :(
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:37 |
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Um, hello. Hi. My name is Extremely Jealous. I can haz your Mustang? Please? Hehe. But seriously, that is amazing and I am a wee bit jealous. It looks perfect! And I bet there’s plenty of twisties out your way where you can have some fun with it.
Congrats on the kids finishing up school, too. That is an amazing accomplishment for your entire family. And triplets?!?! I can’t imagine how you and your wife did that, but big kudos to the both of you.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:39 |
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Erm. A year ago you only had a handful of sheep didn’t you? Forget what they say about rabbits reproducing quickly... SHEEP reproduce quickly! Congrats on the health and abundance of your flock! May they continue to be fruitful. Do you ever see any end products from their wool? Like the yarns that are made from it, or maybe what someone has knitted or crotcheted with the products of your sheep? I think that’d be kinda cool to see how your hard labor turns out.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:41 |
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Jesus, that’s rough! There have been several people in my family and social circle that have gotten cancer diagnoses over the last year, as well. It’s awful. Cancer can go to hell. I’m glad they caught yours early and that you’re on the mend. May your recovery continue apace and may the digestive and other issues subside sooner rather than later.
Do you ever post your restoration projects here on Oppo? I’d love to see them if you do.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:42 |
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He’s a very soft puppers, also seems to be part Fox.
Otherwise it’s just been wörk wörk and I finally paid off the student loans early this month so now I can save up for the garage.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:45 |
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That’s not an entirely inaccurate description. And I’m definitely glad to be moving on to what appears to be a more collaborative and supportive environment. It’s probably gonna take me a little while to shed all the bad habits I picked up to cope with my previous job... like... learning it’s really okay to ask for help, because I’ll actually GET some help . And that the world doesn’t begin and end with whatever accomplishments I’m able to make by myself because I’ll have and be working with a team .
Also, I need more details on this secret attic room hidden behind a bookshelf! That is WILD and I love it! I wonder if your realtor or the previous homeowner knew about it.
What was in there when you finally found it? HOW did you find it? Is it big enough to use, like as a study or something? Or is it more of a storage crawl space?
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:47 |
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No big plans for Oppo... yet. But I’m hoping that, with the new job and a move to a new place, I’ll be able to get back to taking photos again. I used to be such a prolific shooter, and now you can count the months between one photo and the next. I miss it.
Still driving the Fiesta. The a/c quit just in time for me to pay it off and for the approach of summer, so that should be fun. In Texas. Where summers are always triple digits. I’ll get it fixed eventually.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:48 |
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Nice! On all fronts! How cool is it to see something you designed in a virtual world suddenly made real and tangible? It’s incredible, isn’t it? I still feel that way everytime a paper comes out.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:49 |
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Rover!!! So glad to see you. Last time I did one of these, you posted fabric samples for the upholstery that you were considering. You gonna use that stuff? It was great.
Thank you for the Mustang. Now another ask... have we ever discussed books? I have a feeling you’ve probably got an interesting reading list. Any suggestions? I’ve got a library card that’s burning a hole in my wallet. :)
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:50 |
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Hey girlie! I’m glad to hear you’ve had a great year. I hope things continue to go well for you. And I am jealous of your motorcycle collection. :)
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:51 |
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Commuting from where, if you don’t mind me asking? Also... have you always been in Texas? I dunno why I thought you were from somewhere else. Has the Houston humidity already kicked in this year?
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:51 |
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She’s adorable!! Congratulations!
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:52 |
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Thank you! And, I wish!
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:53 |
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There’s a long story behind that. I’ve been meaning to email one of the snout selectors to see if she can help me get things straightened out on GT. Once I get settled in at the new office, mayhaps I can return? (If y’all’ll have me, that is).
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:54 |
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Likewise! CB said he was gonna see you a couple weeks back and I asked if he’d tell you hello for me. But I think in the excitement of the meet, it got lost in the shuffle. No worries. I miss you, Pete. A lot. If you ever wanna come back to the chat, lemme know. I hope you’re doing well.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:54 |
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Thank you!
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:55 |
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Enzo is chonkier than ever. Still very chill, though. He’s a good boi. Just turned four in February. :)
![]() 03/27/2019 at 17:56 |
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He is too cute. I believe this may be a violation of the Oppo handbook. TOO CUTE! Hehe.
And also, congrats on paying off the student loans. That is fricken amazing and awesome all at once.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 18:03 |
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You’ve got my vote, but it’s not really up to me. Krabby is the one who makes those decisions. We could definitely use some help though.
Do you still get FFF emails? I think you’re still on the mailing list even though we haven’t heard from you in a long time. If you need me to pass anything along my email is chucklesw37@gmail.com
![]() 03/27/2019 at 18:22 |
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Thanks so much! I really hope so too! I’m soon to move in with the love of my life, which is both scary and exciting.
If you’re ever in the Chicago area you’re free to ride any of them. :)
![]() 03/27/2019 at 18:23 |
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I boughtened the fabric, but I also need to get some vinyl for a panel or two. Got a source, ha d the m send a sample, probably going to order in the next few days. Seams finally started separating more, so action is needed soon.
If you want light and humorous reading, may I suggest A. Lee Martinez? Kind of pratchettian, but Texan instead of British .
Also been reading a bunch of Timothy Zahn, but not his star wars stuff - lately a book called Icarus Hunt. Have also been reading some hard boiled 40s detective novels, because.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 18:33 |
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Hi. I sent an apology awhile ago, dunno if you ever got it. But welcome back. Sorry for whatever nonsense or troubles I may have caused in the past. Nice to see you doing well.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 18:46 |
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It’s very very cool. This one especially considering the client’s existing building was 70 years old and mostly condemned . I’ve never been on a walk through with a happier client, which is super rewarding.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 18:50 |
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Righ t now it seems that the cure is worse than the disease, although in reality I know that that’s not the case. Every day I seem to be experiencing a new side effect of the chemo, but I just keep reminding myself that it’s only temporary. Thankfully my employer seems to be understanding regarding the time off that I’ve been taking, but with two of us taking time off due to cancer-related issues it is causing some staffing problems. On the bright side, there’s plenty of OT to go around...
I did post a couple of pictures of the Danish modern stereo bench I’m trying to repair at the moment. My dad bought it new back in the late ‘60s/early’70s and I’ve had it for a number of years now. Unfortunately it suffered a lot of damage when I moved a few years ago, and I’m just trying to get it back to a usable state. I don’t have a workshop so I’m doing this in my living room, using the original parts instead of replacing damaged panels. It won’t be perfect, more like a 20-footer in some places, but it will be much stronger than before with the reinforcement I’m adding underneath. There are some scratches on the top, caused by a couple of guys that took away my old heavy 36" CRT TV, that will be visible now that I have a much thinner LED TV. If it looks too bad I might just put a tablecloth on top, but I’ll wait to see how the refinishing goes. I’ve got a four day weekend coming up, so if I have the strength (I didn’t last weekend, but I’m off chemo until Monday so hopefully I’ll have the energy) I’ll try to complete it in the next few days. Pictures will be post ed.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 19:02 |
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oh yes. we are very much in the value added product business. We have our wool spun and then skein and dye it ourselves. We sell patterns and kits and raw wool... and we also make delicious sausage that we run out of every time we make it, not to mention other lamb/sheep meat products.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 19:36 |
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It accesses the roofspace above the garage end of the house, which is half a floor lower than the rest of the upstairs. I guess they decided it was tidier to provide maintenance access through the upstairs wall than via a hatch in the ceiling below, and then someone in the past has wanted to build some shelves onto that wall and had themselves a bit of fun.
There’s a double-garage-sized unlined attic behind, with full standing height in the middle and a chipboard floor. Not a lot in there apart from some cardboard boxes full of God knows what, the TV antenna, and the chimney flue. It’s not really useful apart from for storage space, since it’s mostly not full height and it’s climb-in not walk-in. Would make a great hidden clubroom for kids if you lined part of it though.
We found out about it because we’re getting a new fireplace put in and the fireplace guy we’re using had done some work on the existing one a few years ago before we bought the place. Since the attic is how you access the flue, he’d been in there. When he turned up he said “I remember this house, it’s the one with the secret lair”, and I was like “WTF?”, so he showed me. We’d never have found it otherwise, there’s a magnetic latch and you need to give the shelves a decent tug to pull them loose. I may need to replace that latch with a sprung electromagnetic catch actuated by pulling on a wall sconce or fake book :-).
![]() 03/27/2019 at 19:47 |
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Congratulations. Good to see you back.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 19:50 |
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I currently live near Baton Rouge, but I was born in and lived many years in Texas . My company took on a contract about a year ago in Houston , so I come over on Sundays, stay the week, then go home on Fridays. Except for weekends when I fly. Then I stay the weekend in Houston and fly Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.
The humidity was up for the first time yesterday. Summer is rolling in like a freight train!
![]() 03/27/2019 at 20:13 |
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Thanks, Svend! I definitely miss all your mouthwatering food posts.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 20:15 |
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That’s awesome. I haven’t been to Houston in ages. But this winter has been insane, with so much gloomy weather. I’m amazed the heat and humidity have stayed away as long as they have.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 20:17 |
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Dude. Your future kids are gonna have so much fun in their secret clubhouse! That’s super cool!
![]() 03/27/2019 at 20:20 |
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That’s amazing, Bman! I’m so happy for you. Like, truly. Not just saying it. It’s always awesome when you see someone truly enjoying what they’re doing, and feeling pride in their accomplishments. :)
![]() 03/27/2019 at 20:23 |
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Yeah, Krabby knows what’s going on. She reached out to me a while back about it. She’s actually the one I was referring to about needing to get in contact with. At the time, in the middle of overworked-job and GT bullshit, I was just like “fine! Fuck allll this. I’m not even going to argue and I’m taking a break!” Krabby was very understanding.
![]() 03/27/2019 at 20:25 |
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I don’t think I’ve ever read a detective novel in my life. And I like old school authors (when it comes to sci-fi). Any recommendations on a good vintage detective novel to try?
![]() 03/27/2019 at 23:59 |
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Glad that it sounds like your life/career is making a turn for the better as well. I’d wondered where you’d gone. W elcome back.
![]() 03/28/2019 at 09:00 |
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Hmm. Probably something by Raymond Chandler, or going back further, Dashiell Hamme
tt.
![]() 03/28/2019 at 12:19 |
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eh, I wouldnt be oposed to it
![]() 03/28/2019 at 14:41 |
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I’ve reactivated your account. I’d love to see you back. So would everyone else. If you have trouble logging back in, lemme know.
![]() 03/28/2019 at 18:28 |
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I need the workspace name/link
![]() 03/28/2019 at 18:36 |
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Emailed.